India's Covid-19 cases pass half million mark

India's tally of coronavirus cases passed half a million today with another record single-day surge of 18,552 cases, according to Indian health ministry data.

The number of cases soared to 5,08,953 while the death toll to 15,685 with 384 new fatalities being reported in the last 24 hours, reports our New Delhi correspondent.

India currently has 1,97,387 active cases of Covid-19. So far, 2,95,880 have recovered or been discharged and the recovery rate is nearly 58.13 percent.

Among the 384 new deaths reported in the last 24 hours till this morning, 175 were in Maharashtra, 63 in Delhi, 46 in Tamil Nadu, 19 in Uttar Pradesh, 18 in Gujarat, 13 in Haryana, 12 in Andhra Pradesh, 10 each in West Bengal and Karnataka, seven in Telangana, four in Madhya Pradesh, two in Punjab, one each in Jammu and Kashmir, Chhattisgarh, Bihar, Rajasthan and Uttarakhand.

In Assam, 273 more people tested positive for coronavirus yesterday, raising the tally in the state to 6,919, Health Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said.

Among the fresh cases, 203 are from the Guwahati city alone, where a complete lockdown will be imposed from June 28 midnight, he said.

However, the government in another north eastern state yesterday relaxed lockdown norms in the capital city Aizawl's municipal area, district headquarters and containment zones following a dip in coronavirus cases in the past two days, officials said.

The new order came into effect from Friday and will be valid till June 30. On June 21, the state government had extended the complete lockdown in these places till June 30 to contain the spread of Covid-19.

In Tamil Nadu, one of the worst coronavirus-hit states of India with over 74,000 cases, mental health experts say the pandemic has triggered panic attacks among those who tested positive for the virus, causing depression and even driving some to the brink of suicide.

According to experts, fear of contamination, panic attacks, constant reassurance seeking behaviour, sleep disturbance, excessive worry, feelings of helplessness and probability of an economic slowdown are the major factors leading to depression and anxiety among the people.

The state has witnessed a few instances of suicides allegedly related to the contagion.